Where Is Your Heart?
by chelsXXchels
Summary: Peyton and Nathan are still together like in the beginning of the show and they continue to give each other 2nd chances. When Nate falls for Haley, and she falls for him, they want to be together, but tragedy strikes and it tests their love.
1. Nobody Knows

_Ok. This is my first story and I'm not really sure how this one will turn out or how ya'll are going to like it... so here it goes._

**Where Is Your Heart?**

Chapter 1: **Nobody Knows**

_By: Chelsea _

_**Rating:**_** K+... Some bad language.**

_**Summary:**_** Peyton and Nathan are together (like in the beginning of the show). They continue to give each other second chances. When Nathan falls for Haley and she falls for him, they want to be together, but tragedy strikes and it tests their love.**

_**Disclaimer:**_ **I do not in any way own One Tree Hill, its characters, its settings, or its plots. I did borrow the title of the story from a Kelly Clarkson song. The title of this chapter is borrowed from a P!nk song.**

_Chap.1..._

_Nobody Knows_

Haley was half-way asleep when her alarm went off signaling that it was 6 am. She rolled over and the silky sheets felt soft on her body. She turned the alarm off and sat up. _Ugghhh, not school, not again._ She thought. It was Wednesday - and by Wednesday she got pretty tired of the same old routine. She only imagined how much worse it would get - it was only the 3rd week of school. She took a shower, brushed her teeth, blow-dried and brushed her hair, and got dressed. She walked out the door and started her walk to school.

**OTH**

When she got to school there was still 30 minutes until the bell rang. She had skipped breakfast so she got to school earlier. She saw Luke sitting at a table reading a book. Typical.

"Hey Luke - whatcha reading?"

Luke looked up at his best friend. "Why do you want to know, not like your gonna read it."

Haley smiled and twisted, "True." She shook her head to get the hair out of her face and then added, "So, any new gossip?"

"Well, supposedly Nathan and Peyton had another one of their world-famous fights yesterday in the mall." he said in a very serious tone. They tended to do that a lot, pretend like it was life-altering to them, when actually they could care less.

"Uh-uh... did they break up?" Haley said with fake concern in her voice.

"Well, our sources haven't verified that yet." he said jokingly. "Why are you here so early?"

"I skipped breakfast. Why are _you_ here so early?" she said returning the question.

"I'm always here this early." he said nonchalantly. Just then Nathan and Peyton came onto the campus holding hands. "So, bout the breakup thing - I'm taking it's a 'no'" Lucas said when he saw them walking up. Haley always felt so bad when they were together within eye shot of Lucas. He had a crush on Peyton since what? 7th Grade?

Haley decided to change the subject, "So, what are you doing today after school?" It was mid-August and their junior year had just begun 3 weeks ago. So, almost every day since the first day they went to the river court.

"I dunno." he said. "What do you wanna do?" he put a bookmark in his book and closed it, setting it down on the table.

"River court sound good?" After she said this she turned her head towards the direction of Nathan and Peyton. They were fighting, _again_. 3rd week of school and this has happened about 15 to 20 times.

"What whore did you sleep with now?!?!" They could hear Peyton yelling at Nathan.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I was at Tim's the_ whole_ night!" He yelled back. It was obvious to most people that he was lying because, well, he did it all the time.

"Sure you were. You really expect me to believe that?"

"Well, you should, considering you're my _girlfriend_!" he said with a sarcastic tone in his voice just to be rude.

"Well maybe I don't want to be your girlfriend anymore!!" She yelled marching off - her brown leather backpack over one shoulder.

"Ya know what Peyton? Call me when you're a little less PMS!" he yelled after her.

"That's sad." Haley whispered to Lucas. "If I'm ever in a relationship like that - slap me, no joke." she said seriously.

"Gladly." he said smiling. These fights always put him in a semi-good mood. They were just so funny. Just then Nathan looked towards Lucas.

"What are _you_ looking at?" he directed at Lucas. Lucas smiled and shrugged it off. "I know you want her - but try not to show your amusement from our fights." He stormed off into the school.

"Can you believe I have to sit by that everyday in 3 periods." Haley said reflecting on her schedule. She got stuck in 3 classes with him - math, English, and history. Math, 1st period, she sat behind him. English, 3rd period, she sat next to him. History, which she shared with Peyton and Lucas as well, was 8th period, and she sat diagonal to him. Lucas smiled at her comment. She pulled out a notebook to study for a test. She studied and Lucas read the whole 15 minutes until the bell rang.

**OTH**

Haley was one of the first people to arrive in math. She normally was. She glanced at the clock - she still had 2 minutes before the bell rang. _Just goes to show how many people goof around between classes. _She thought sarcastically. She got herself wrapped up in the problem written on the board for the remaining two minutes. Seconds before the bell rang, a swarm of blue Tree Hill Raven basketball letterman jackets entered the room. Nathan took his seat in front of Haley in the second row, she was in the third. He was so tall, she sometimes had trouble seeing over him.

Mrs. Sanders gave them simple instructions for a problem. Nathan twisted awkwardly backwards in the desk to see Haley. "Can I borrow a pencil?" he said with raised eyebrows.

"You didn't bring a pencil to_ math_ class?" she asked handing him a yellow pencil.

"No, why should I when I can get them from you?" he answered her sarcastically. They worked the problem for a couple of minutes. Haley had finished it easily, but she could see other people struggling - especially Nathan. Then, the teacher called on him for the answer. He knitted his eyebrows as though trying to figure out what he had just done on the piece of paper. "729 cubed?" he said questioningly. The teacher profoundly shook her head and asked Haley for the answer.

"63 squared" she said confidently. Mrs. Sanders praised her for the good work and wrote some notes on the board. Haley leaned over to see Nathan's paper. At least he tried to solve the problem. She could tell what he had done wrong easily, only because she knew how to do it correctly.

Nathan copied the notes - all he really wanted was to pass a class, he just wasn't smart enough for it. He wished that he could be as smart as someone like Haley James, but knew it couldn't happen. Mrs. Sanders handed out a quiz - a _pop_ quiz. So if you didn't study, you fail, unless you are really smart. It took Nathan the whole rest of the period to finish the quiz. For him it had been really hard. He was one of 2 other students that barely finished. Haley, on the other hand, had finished within 20 minutes. The bell rang and Nathan quickly gathered his books. "Thanks for the pencil." You could hear a faint trace of disappointment in his voice. He knew that he failed the quiz.

"Your welcome." Haley said taking the pencil and exiting the room.

**OTH**

Nathan had to got see Principal Turner after school. He entered the office and Coach Durham was sitting in a chair across from the desk. What they basically said was that either Nathan got a tutor and passed his classes, or he isn't able to play basketball anymore. They handed him a slip and told him to go and see the designated tutor.

Haley had stayed after school that day to put away some books and papers in the tutor center. She had cleared a table when there was a knock at the door and someone entered. Nathan. "Can I help you?" she said with a sarcastic tone in her voice.

Nathan had gone to see if Haley was there. He wanted to get it straightened out with no one else around. "Uh... yeah, you're supposed to tutor me."

"What are you talking about?" Haley said with a confused look on her face.

"It says so right here," he said handing her the slip of paper with her name on it. "Trust me, I wouldn't come and visit Pucas's friend by choice." he said with an evil smile.

She couldn't believe this. "No, you're gonna have to tell Principal Turner to assign you a new tutor." she said handing him the slip of paper back.

Nathan was upset by this. Turner and Whitey had told him that Haley was the best. "Come on Haley. They said you're the best - and I definitely need the best. Please." he said with that gorgeous crooked smile that most girls couldn't resist.

Haley saw right threw his act, "That smile doesn't work on me." she said confidently. She thought about it. He did sound sincere when he had said that. Then she remembered earlier that day in math, he had really tried to get the right answer, he had really struggled with it too. "On one condition," she said, "don't pull any of that lover boy charm on me, 'cause it won't work." She smiled and then the smile disappeared almost as fast as it had appeared. Lucas. "Change that to 2 conditions, nobody knows - especially Lucas." When Luke joined the team, Nathan had teased him, but it was starting to die down. And she hoped it stayed that way.

Nathan had smiled when she said the comment about his 'lover boy charm'. But when she said not to tell Lucas, he was a bit confused - but decided not to question it. He couldn't say something stupid and risk her backing out. "Ok."

"Then meet me tomorrow morning - 6:30 - at the peer." she said. She didn't want Lucas to see them at school.

"Whatever you say." He didn't necessarily like the time or the place, but once again, he wasn't about to screw things up.

_PLEASE tell me how ya like it and if I should continue with another chapter!!_


	2. Complicated

_Ok, I don't really know how good the first chapter was. In my personal opinion - it wasn't the best. Trust me - IT WILL GET BETTER! Either in Chapter 3 or 4 - that's when it will become so good you won't be able to resist. (Oh yeah, and would any of you mind telling me what AU stands for in some people's summaries?) And please, bare with me, I know this one is a little long._

Chapter 2: **Complicated**

_By: Chelsea_

_**Rating:**_** K+... some bad language.**

_**Disclaimer:**_** I do not own One Tree Hill or any of its characters - they all belong to Mark. The title of the story is borrowed from a Kelly Clarkson song and the title of this chapter is borrowed from an Avril Lavigne song.**

_Chap. 2..._

_Complicated_

_This chapter takes place a few weeks after Haley started tutoring Nathan._

"Come on Nathan, you can do it," Haley said encouraging Nathan.

"Ugh, no I can't - it's too hard," Nathan sighed, getting frustrated with the math problem. They were at Nathan's house and it was 6:30 on Friday morning. Nathan had been working on the same problem for about 10 minutes now. "It's just too confusing."

Haley sighed, "It's not too hard and you _can_ do it." She looked at him, his face still twisted with confusion while looking at the paper. "Look, once you multiply for the first step - you divide it by the variable," she said looking into his beautiful brown eyes. It was hard for her to admit to herself, but she had developed a crush on him in the last few weeks. She didn't know what it was; the way he opened up to her, his sweet smile, the reason that he didn't treat her like trash - the way he did to Peyton. And then, of course, were his looks. She loved it when he figured out a problem and he had a big smile. It wasn't the fake smile she had seen him use before, but a real smile.

Nathan did what Haley told him to. _Yes!_ He thought. "Have I told you that you are the best tutor in the world?" he said with his 'real' smile.

"Well, I don't know about 'best', but I am pretty good," she said jokingly.

"Thanks," Nathan said - meaning it. He embraced her in a hug. Haley couldn't lie - she liked it when he was happy about his grades or something because he normally gave her a hug.

They continued to work on some problems when suddenly they realized it was 5 minutes to 8. The first bell rang at 8. "Oh my gosh, we're going to late!" Haley yelled noticing the clock. Nathan grabbed his books and stuffed them in his bag as he walked out of the kitchen, Haley following. She normally walked a block from Nathan's and caught a bus, but the Tree Hill buses only stopped every 30 minutes. She figured she would just have to walk, considering Nathan probably wouldn't want to be seen with_ her. _When they got outside, Nathan started towards his truck and Haley went in the opposite direction.

"Where are you going?" Nathan asked confused.

"Walking..." Haley said. She did this every day. Why would he be confused?

"Ummm, the bell rings in 5 minutes - it will take you 20 minutes to walk there. Get in," he said pointing towards his red truck.

Haley walked to the truck and getting into the passenger side. Nathan hopped in the driver's side and sped to school. When they got there, Haley started gathering her things. "Thanks for the ride," she said smiling.

"You're welcome," he said, also grabbing his things. He looked over at her. She was so different than other girls - she intrigued him. She didn't fall over him or beg him to have sex with her. He liked that. She wasn't always nagging on him and she was patient - something Peyton was _not._ He smiled at her. "Ummm, thank you."

"Huh? You gave _me_ the ride," she said wrinkling her eyebrows.

"No, I mean for helping me - the whole tutoring thing and all. Most people wouldn't have enough patience," he said truthfully. He was surprised that she had stuck around this long.

Haley looked at him with sympathetic eyes. "No problem. You just need more time than other people, that's all."

Nathan couldn't believe it. She hadn't laughed or said anything rude - most people would have taken that opportunity. He did his world-famous smirk, but there was something different about it. He had done it shyly. Haley smiled back - also a shy smile. Her heart was beating rapidly and her stomach was doing flip-flops. He was looking into her eyes. That was all he had to do and she got nervous.

Nathan heart was beating hard against his chest. He leaned over into the passenger seat and kissed her. His soft lips touching her made Haley want to faint. She thought she was going to die. She was actually shocked, she hadn't expected him to do that. When he drew back, Haley tried to say something but couldn't. Then, finally, the words came, "Uhhh, Peyton," was all she could manage.

Nathan couldn't believe what he had just done. It had just happened, he didn't mean for it to. "What about her?" he answered.

"Aren't you still dating her?" Haley asked.

"Yeah, and she doesn't have to know about this - it was an accident," he said looking at her and wrinkling his eyebrows and forehead.

Haley looked at him. She jumped out of the car with her bag and quickly walked to the building. She had the tutor center as her first period - so no one would notice that she was late. She didn't have anyone to tutor either. She couldn't believe that Nathan had just kissed her and then called it an accident. She tried to hold back the tears but couldn't. They started pouring down from her eyes about the time she walked threw the doors. She went into the girl's bathroom and locked herself in the last stall and cried.

"Haley!" he called after her. But she didn't look back. He grabbed his bag and tried to catch-up to her. But when he entered the building, he didn't see her.

"Mr. Scott, I'm guessing that there is a good reason you are 10 minutes late for class?" Mr. Turner coldly said behind him.

"Sorry, sir, it won't happen again," Nathan replied.

"You're right it won't," Turner said, leading Nathan into the office.

**OTH**

Haley walked into the bleachers and sat down, saving a spot for Mouth. She watched as Peyton and Brooke stretched on the side of the court. She kept trying to get her mind off of it - but she couldn't. All day she had been distracted, and it hadn't changed any.

Nathan was changing into his jersey. He looked next to him at Lucas. _Lucas_. That reminded him of Haley. Everything reminded him of Haley. The tiles on the floor in the Spanish room reminded him of Haley. They were a pukish green and blue - like a poncho thing that she wore. _Stop it!!_ He thought to himself. _Get your head in the game._ But why couldn't he stop thinking about her?

**OTH**

The Ravens had one - like usual. She walked out to wait for Luke.

Nathan saw Haley leaving when he was entering the locker room. He needed to talk to her. He hurried up and got changed and headed outside. "Hey Nathan, where ya going?" Tim yelled from in the locker room, but Nate ignored him and went outside. He looked to his left and there she was. "Haley, can we talk?"

Haley looked over at him. Sure, she couldn't stop thinking about him, but she was disgusted at him. "No," she said and walked off.

Nathan chased after her. "Haley, please, I'm sorry!!" Nathan looked at her with sympathetic eyes.

"You're sorry? You should have thought of that before - " she cut herself off and whispered, "before you kissed me."

"I know. Haley, just give me one more chance." He begged her.

She looked at him. She bit her bottom lip and thought about it. "I'll get back to you on that one." She walked off, not remembering to wait for Lucas. As she walked off the school campus, she felt tears trickle down her face. She cried the whole way home. When she reached the house, she unlocked the door with her key and went inside. Haley walked to her room and fell on her bed and cried.

_I hope you guys liked it. I know it was a little long - but I didn't really know how else to put all of this into words. Please leave a review if you liked it!! You're reviews give me inspiration to keep on writing! -Chels_


	3. Love Doesn't Ask Why

_Sorry it's taken me so long to update. Me and the fam went camping and I've been really busy lately. It also doesn't help that I had no idea what to do next. Let's just say I hit a writer's block. But, all is better now and I have pretty much planned out the next 2 or 3 chapters (I'm not sure where I'm gonna divide it yet). So, I wanna thank all of ya'll for the reviews and thank you for keep reading. I wasn't sure how well the story would be, but ya'lls support has been really great._ _So I hope ya'll enjoy this next chapter!! Oh, and remember - ya'lls reviews are awesome inspiration!!_

**Chapter 3:**** Love Doesn't Ask Why **

_By: Chelsea_

_**Rating:**_** K+... some bad language.**

_**Disclaimer:**_** I (unfortunately) do not own One Tree Hill or any of the characters or settings. The title of the story is borrowed from a Kelly Clarkson song. The title of this chapter is borrowed from a Celine Dion song. **

_Chap. 3..._

_Love Doesn't Ask Why_

Haley woke up in the same uncomfortable position that she had fallen asleep in. She sat up in the bed and looked at herself. She was still in the clothes she had worn the day before. When she had fallen on the bed last night crying - she shortly fell asleep. Why she had spent all that time crying, she was unsure. She got up out of the bed and walked over to the mirror. Her eyes were red and puffy from all of the crying. As Haley started to walk to the bathroom to take a shower, she glanced at her clock. It was 10 am. _At least I don't have to work_, she thought. After the shower she brushed her teeth and her hair and got dressed. She didn't bother to dry her hair - she didn't feel like messing with it. Haley grabbed a text book and some paper and flopped down on her bed. She opened the book and was about to begin to write her report when her cell phone rang. She reached across the bed and grabbed it off the night stand. "Hello," she said, not bothering to look at who it was.

"Hey! Where did you disappear to last night? I couldn't find you anywhere." said the familiar voice of Lucas.

"Sorry, I was tired and came home," she lied. She wasn't going to go into details about this with Luke. He hated Nathan. And he didn't even know she was tutoring him.

"Ok. Do you want to do something? It's Saturday, so we could go to the rivercourt," Lucas replied.

"Not really. I'm still exhausted, so I think I will stay home today," she just wanted stay by herself.

Lucas understood. "Alright. See ya later." Haley replied with a 'bye' and they hung up. Instead of writing of her report she laid back in the bed. She couldn't do this to herself. She couldn't sit in her room and mope. She put on some flip flops and left the house. She had to clear her head, and a walk usually did that. She had walked a few blocks when a familiar truck slowed down behind her. _Nathan._

"Haley!" he yelled as he rolled the window down. "Haley!" But she continued to ignore him. She could feel tears welling in her eyes. She had really liked him. When he kissed her, and then said it was an accident, it broke her heart. She couldn't deal with him right now. "Haley! I know you can hear me," he said pulling the truck over and getting out. "Come on! Talk to me."

Haley turned around and glared at him. "Talk about what?" she said in almost a whisper.

"You know what I want to talk about," he said looking at her with sympathy in his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"You're sorry, I get it. What do you want me to do about it?" she said coldly.

"Haley, I was up all last night thinking about... _it_" he said referring to the kiss. "And, I know I hurt you, but I was hoping we could get past it."

Haley couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Get past it?" She turned around and ran. She ran at least a mile and she hit the beach. Thoughts were racing threw her head. _Forgive him, he's sorry, it was just a kiss. Don't forgive him, he broke your heart, he kissed you and called it an accident. _Haley sat on the beach thinking for about an hour and a half. _Why am I feeling this?_ She got up off the sand and started towards her house. She did homework until supper, then after supper, she went to her room. She didn't know what to do. She kept picking up her phone and then putting it back down. About the 5th time she picked it up, she flipped it open. She looked threw her contacts and found 'Nathan Cell'. She hit the green button and listened to the obnoxious rap song he had put on his phone for callers to listen to. Finally, he answered.

"Haley," he said calmly.

"Tomorrow morning, 7, the pier. Bring your math book." she said quickly then hung up. She had to do it quickly or she would change her mind. Soon after that she went to sleep.

**OTH**

Nathan rolled over in the covers the next morning. He didn't want to wake up, but the shriek of his alarm clock said otherwise. He hit the 'off' button and stared at the clock. 5:30 a.m. He wanted to be early, he couldn't screw up a second chance. He got ready quickly and arrived at the pier at 6:45. He glanced at his watch and noticed he had some extra time. He hopped in his truck and went down a block to the flower shop. When he was done there, he went back to the pier. It was 7 on the dot and Haley still wasn't there.

Haley was running late. She was sleeping so hard that she didn't hear the alarm. She rushed and got to the pier at 7:15. When she walked up she couldn't help but smile. Nathan was sitting on a table holding a bouquet of lilies, sunflowers, and an assortment of other wild flowers.

"I didn't know which ones were your favorite," he said smiling. He had to make it up to her somehow, and ease his own conscious. He did, in fact, have feelings for her. That is what made everything so much harder. It was getting tougher to hide and control them.

Haley smiled. "You're pathetic," she said. "Thank you," she took the flowers and smelled them. "Ok, but this doesn't mean you can get out of that math homework."

They worked for about an hour. Nathan was learning absolutely nothing. He was too distracted. Why was he feeling this way? He had just made up with Peyton. But, he was so confused. "Nathan!" Haley laughed. "You're not listening to a word I say."

"Sorry," Nathan apologized.

"Seems like I'm hearing that word a lot lately," Haley replied.

They worked for about 10 more minutes and Nathan was still staring at her. "Haley, I like you." The words that he had just said sounded so juvenile. He couldn't believe he had said them. When he heard himself, he sounded like a 5 year old in kindergarten telling someone he had a crush on them.

Haley's eyebrows raised. "You what?"

Nathan sighed, "Haley, I have feelings for you and I don't know why."

Was Haley actually hearing this? "Nathan..." Haley sighed. "Nathan, if you are playing a joke on me..." you could hear the vulnerability in her voice.

"I'm not," he said in almost a whisper. He placed his right hand on her left cheek. Haley was breathing heavily. Nathan leaned in and gently kissed her.

_So, hope you guys liked it! I know it was a little long but it was hard to write. I knew what I wanted to happen but it was so hard to put into words. Please review!_


	4. For You I Will

_Ok, so, I have written this chapter once, and I accidently deleted it. So, I am rewriting it from memory. Thank you for all the reviews and I am so happy that ya'll like it. Also, thank you for answering my question about what _AU _means. But I have 2 more questions: What does _Fluff _or _Baby Fluff_ and_ One Shot_ mean? Also, I'm still not sure how many chapters this is going to end up being, so just bare with me._

Chapter 4:**For You I Will**

_By: Chelsea_

_**Rating:**_** K+... some bad language**

_**Disclaimer:**_** Why do they keep torturing me by making me saying this over and over again? I do not own One Tree Hill, its characters, or any of its settings. The title of this story also doesn't belong to me. It is borrowed from a Kelly Clarkson song. The title of this chapter doesn't belong to me either. It is borrowed from a Teddy Geiger song. It isn't actually the full title (it's ****For You I Will (Confidence)****) but that's where I got the title from.**

_Chap. 4..._

_For You I Will_

_After the kiss they continued the session for only 10 minutes. They then left and did their normal things. Now it is Monday morning._

Haley rolled over in the bed not wanting to get up. She had been giddy and happy all day yesterday after Nathan had told her he had feelings for her. She slowly sat up in the bed and put her bare feet on the scraggly carpet. She stood up and went into the bathroom that was connected to her room. She took a shower last night and her hair looked ok, so she brushed it and her teeth. She walked over out of the bathroom and towards her closet. She picked out some clothes and changed. When she was done putting her books into her bag she looked at the clock. 6:30 a.m. It had only taken her 30 minutes to get ready. She ate quickly and was at school at 7:30 a.m. She walked over to the table where Lucas was. "Hey," she said as she sat down.

Nathan was eating breakfast when she popped into his head again. Why was it that she made him feel so different? He couldn't stop thinking about her. She intrigued him. There was only one problem - Peyton. They had been having problems lately anyway. So, he would ask Haley what she thought about it today. When he was finished with breakfast, he headed to school.

Haley and Lucas headed into the building 10 minutes prior to the bell. They parted for their classes and Haley entered the Tutor Center. It was still empty, so she set her bag down and began looking for a file in the large filing cabinet.

"Haley James!" said a voice that made her jump. She turned and saw Nathan standing in the door way.

"Don't scare me like that!" she said hitting him in the arm playfully as he walked over. "So, what are you doing here?"

Nathan smiled. There really wasn't a reason, he just did. He couldn't help it - he always smiled around her. "I'm here to see you."

"Well, that's very flattering," she said closing the filing cabinet.

Nathan laughed a little. "I want to talk to you about something," he said with a little more serious tone.

_Please don't tell me that what you did and said yesterday was an accident,_ she prayed. "Umm, what?" she said nervously, her smile now lost.

Nathan's smile quickly returned when he saw that she was worried. "Wow, don't act so scared. I wanted to talk to you about us," he heaved, he didn't really know how to say this. He was nervous and had to muster all of the confidence he had. "Do you like me Haley?" he asked seriously again.

"Well, yeah, but..."

She was interrupted, "I mean, do you want to be with me?"

Haley couldn't believe this. He was asking her if she wanted to be with him. Of course she did. "Yeah!" she said. You could clearly hear the excitement and happiness in her voice. Then a thought crossed her mind. _Peyton._ "But, what about Peyton?"

"I'll take care of it," she knew he meant it because she could see the compassion in his eyes and hear it in his voice.

"Are you sure you want to break up with her?" she asked.

"For you I will," he said smiling. Knowing that the bell was about to ring, he stuck his head out the door to make sure the coast was clear. Once he knew it was, he bent down and kissed her. When he came out of the kiss he could see her smile. Her beautiful smile - the one that he had been attracted to. He dashed out the door and into his 1st period room just as the bell rang.

**OTH**

Nathan noticed that Peyton had skipped the last part of the day. He knew that she went home for lunch, but she never returned. He was getting in his truck and he was going to head over to her house. He had been waiting all day for the last bell to ring and it had finally come. As he was putting the key into the ignition, his phone beeped, indicating that he had a new text message. It was from Peyton and read:

_We need 2 talk, can u come over?_

He quickly replied and said he'd be right there. Maybe she wanted to break up? That's what 'we need to talk' usually meant. He pulled up in front of her house and parallel-parked in front of the sidewalk. He walked up the sidewalk and knocked on the door, there was no answer. He grabbed the doorknob and noticed that the door was unlocked. He opened it and walked up the stairs to her room. "Peyton..." he said opening the door to her room. When he entered he noticed that she was laying on her bed crying. "Peyton, what's wrong?" he asked walking over to comfort her.

Peyton looked at Nathan with red, puffy eyes. She had been crying since lunch. "Look at this!" she said handing him and old, wrinkled piece of paper.

He read it to himself and instantly knew what it meant. It was from a lady named Grace and it was to Peyton's dad. It had some references to Peyton and if he was going to bring her 'when he left'. The letter was signed: _Love, Grace_. Her dad had been cheating on her mom when she was alive with this woman. "How... where did you find this?" he asked wondering how she had come upon this.

"When I came home for lunch, I wasn't very hungry, so I decided to look around in our attic," she managed between sobs. "Well, I found this box and he had about 10 letters in a rubber band. They were all like this. All from _Grace_!" she said 'Grace' as if it was part of a different language. "When I called him to ask him about it, he said that it only lasted for 6 months. That was his response!" her words were slightly slurred because of the constant sobs. "All that time, he kept saying he loved her! Apparently, he loved _Grace_ too!"

Nathan couldn't believe this. He had come over here to break up with her and she was already crying hysterically. He tried to comfort her, but it was nearly impossible. About an hour and a half later she had quit crying. He couldn't dump her now. Her heart was already broken, he couldn't freeze the 2 halves and drop them from a 5 story building. He was supposed to meet Haley in the alley by the café' at 6:30, but at this rate that wouldn't happen. He was pretty sure she was ok, but he didn't want to just leave.

"Nathan," he heard his name and it interrupted his thoughts.

"Yeah Peyton."

"Are you ok?" she asked. He looked a little distant. She was answered with a nod. He had his mind on something but he wasn't going to talk to her about it. _How sweet!_ She thought. _He probably doesn't want to upset me even more by dumping his problems on me. I'm so lucky to have him. _She knew they fought a lot, but they always made up, and there had to be a reason behind it. "Nate, umm, I kinda wanna be alone?" she said.

"Are you sure?" Nathan asked.

"Yeah." They said goodbye and Nathan uncomfortably pecked her lips. He walked out the door with a swarm of thoughts. What was he supposed to tell Haley?

**OTH**

Haley was impatiently waiting in the alley. She had checked before entering the alley to make sure that no one saw her - that would look suspicious. She looked at her watch, 6:50. _Maybe things didn't go good with Peyton? Maybe he forgot? Maybe this was a joke._ She was just about to give up when she saw his truck drive by the alley. A couple of minutes later he was walking around the corner into the alley smiling. When he reached her, she kissed him. She was happy - they were going to get to be together.

Nathan kissed back, he didn't want that moment to end. He wanted to be with her. He didn't want to tell her that he didn't break up with Peyton. When the kiss was over, he slipped his arms around her into a hug.

Haley could tell that there was something wrong. She didn't know how, she could just tell. She backed out of the hug and looked at him, "Nate, are you ok?" she was still holding his arms.

He looked down at the ground when she asked this. "I didn't break up with Peyton."

Haley was shocked by these words. "Why?"

He explained everything about the letters and what her dad said. Haley understood, but she wasn't happy. "I couldn't break up with her on top of all of that," Nathan continued.

"Well," Haley started, "I'm glad you didn't, because that would have been horrible."

Nathan could tell she was upset. "I'm sorry, as soon as it blows over." He looked towards the end of the alley. "I still care about you," he said looking back at her.

"Are you still sure?" she said with disappointment in her voice.

"For you, ya, for you... I would do anything." Nathan stuttered out.

"I know," Haley said jokingly, happiness clearly back in her voice. She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head in is chest. He did the same and rested his chin on her head. After about 10 minutes of just holding each other, Haley interrupted the silence, "I have to go to work."

Nathan unwrapped his arms. "What about tomorrow?" he asked her.

Haley's blank expression changed into a full smile. "Same time as today?" He nodded in agreement. Haley looked at him, she was giving him her heart and she somehow knew that he would treat it good. She turned to her left, exiting the alley. Nathan watched her leave. Once she was gone, he turned to his right and left, going towards his truck.

_I hope you liked it! Another long chapter - but someone said that's not such a bad thing - so I hope not! I actually think that the 2__nd__ version turned out better than the original. Actually, it's longer! Lol. Remember, please review and tell me what you think!!!_


	5. Losing My Ground

_Hey guys. I've gotten a lot of good reviews and I'm very happy! I don't really know where I'm gonna go with this story for sure, but I know mostly what I want to happen. Anyway, thank you for answering my dumb questions on what some things mean and thanks for the positive feedback. Hope you enjoy this chapter!_

Chapter 5: **Losing My Ground**

_By: Chelsea_

_**Rating:**_**K+... some bad language**

_**Disclaimer:**_** Once again, they are forcing me to say it. I... do... not... own... One Tree Hill sobs . I also do not own its settings or characters. The title of this story is borrowed from a Kelly Clarkson song and the title of this chapter is borrowed from a Fergie song.**

_Chap. 5..._

_Losing My Ground_

"Nathan," Haley said looking up from the math book.

"Yeah," he said, looking up at her from across the table with those sincere eyes that he always looked at her with. It had been about a week since they first met in the alley. The day after they met again and decided to just see each other in the tutor sessions, it would be easier that way.

Haley looked back up at him, staring at her were the blue eyes that made her heart melt. But she broke threw it, she had to say something and she was going to say it. "You said you were going to break up with her," her voice was shaky. It was always a touchy subject, and she wanted nothing more than to be with him. Every time that he kissed her passionately and she kissed back, her whole body shook with guilt. It was as if Peyton was watching them all the time, watching everything they did.

Nathan sighed. He knew that Haley felt bad for doing this to Peyton. "I am, she's just really upset. And her dad is coming home tomorrow, she wants me to be there," Nathan said slowly. In Peyton's eyes, things with her and Nathan were getting better. But in reality, they were getting worse. They hadn't kissed, or _really_ kissed, in a week If they did, it was a small peck on the lips or the cheek. They hadn't had sex, and they barely talked. Brooke had even noticed things getting worse. She had confronted Nathan in the hallway. She asked him weird questions about their relationship. She concluded that they were just growing apart. He had feared for a couple of days that Brooke suspected something, but she dropped it.

"Why does she want you there? Isn't that something to do with her and her dad? I mean, I know this has to be tough for her," she said pretty roughly, "but... do you have to go?" Haley said a little softer. She didn't like it when he spent extra time with Peyton. She could feel tears starting to well up in her eyes. She didn't know why she always started crying when they talked about Peyton. She just cared for Nathan so much, she didn't want to share him.

Nathan felt bad. He hated putting Haley through this. "Haley. Maybe after this she'll be better. Maybe then I can end things with her," Nathan wanted nothing more than to kiss Haley in public. To put his arm around her in front of people. To tell someone how great she was. But he couldn't do that yet. "Just a little bit longer," Nathan reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

"I know..." Haley said drifting off. Haley did feel bad for Peyton though. Every one at school had found out. Peyton had told Brooke and someone overheard them talking about it and the rest is history. Haley looked at her watch, 10:30 a.m. "I have to be at Karen's at 11," Haley said looking up, trying to change the subject. It was Sunday and Karen wanted to be off for lunch. She apparently had some date with Keith.

"I'll drop you off," Nathan said getting up. He closed his books and set them aside watching her put her books into her bag. She threw the bag over her shoulder and Nathan laughing. For such a small girl, she carried so much in her bag. He threw his arm around her neck as they walked out to his truck.

**OTH**

_Next day..._

Haley walked out of the school after the last bell had rung. She had a tutoring session with Nate until 5, then she had to go to the café and he had to meet Peyton. Haley walked part of the way to Nathan's house when Nathan's truck stopped behind her. "Come on!" he yelled to her. Haley hopped in. When they arrived at his house they covered mostly English.

"What time do you have to be at the café?" Nathan asked Haley, looking at her sitting next to him.

"In 20 minutes," she looked up at him and smiled.

"So, how did I do, did I just flunk out of school?" he said referring to the practice quiz she was grading.

Haley laughed, "You actually did really good." She handed him the quiz. 83 - _definitely _better compared to his last one - a 64.

"Yes!" Nathan cheered. He looked over at Haley and kissed her. While his lips were still only and inch away from hers after the kiss, he said, "Thank you."

Haley smiled at him, "Anytime, I mean, it's my job." She glanced at her watch. It was getting later. "Hey, I think I'm going to head out to Karen's," she said standing up and closing her book.

Nathan stood up after she did. "I'll give you a ride," he said scooting his books to the end of the table, "I have to go to town anyway."

Nathan waited for Haley to put up her stuff, and when she was done he grabbed her hand and entwined his fingers with hers. They walked out to Nate's truck in silence. They drove off, after about a mile, Nate let go of the wheel with his right hand and grabbed Haley's left hand. She smiled big at him, she couldn't be happier. She was giving him her heart, and somehow she knew he would treat it well.

They both enjoyed the beautiful silence, and too soon, they were on the same street as Karen's Café. He pulled up to the curb. "I'll call you when I leave Peyton's," he said, gently letting go of her hand.

"Okay," Haley said looking at him. She unlocked her door and reached down for her bag.

"Hey," Nathan said. She looked back at him. He gave her a sweet kiss goodbye. "Bye."

Haley smiled and shook her head. She opened the door and hopped out.

**...One Tree Hill...**

_No!_He screamed internally. _No!_He couldn't have just seen that. _Them._What was she thinking? His face twisted in disgust. He saw her walk into the café and the truck drive off. He walked down the sidewalk from the corner where he had just stood. Through the glass he could see her putting on a green apron and walking to a table. He threw his head back and tried to clear his thoughts, but that was nearly impossible. He had just seen something that wasn't too easy to forget. He grabbed the doorknob and walked inside. He tensely walked over to his best friend.

"Hey Luke," Haley said when she saw him walking over. Something was wrong, she could tell by his face.

"We need to talk," Lucas said harshly. He headed towards the backroom, signaling for her follow.

The café was empty, so she followed Lucas. "What's up?" she asked a little nervously.

"Tell me... tell me that what I just saw... what I just saw was an hallucination." he said stuttering.

This was exactly what Haley feared, he had seen her getting out of Nathan's truck. "Luke, are you talking about Nathan?" she was answered with a nod. She couldn't tell him about _them._So she decided not to. "I'm tutoring him, there was no other tutor and if I didn't he would have failed the 11th grade and would have had to do the grade again next year and I couldn't have that happen just because I didn't want to tutor him. And about the truck, I was running late and he offered me a ride. I didn't want to tell you because I knew you would be mad," Haley said in a rant. She hoped that she didn't sound suspicious.

Lucas's response was his famous 'brooding' look. "What are you tutoring him in? The anatomy of the tongue?!?!" he said in a hushed yell.

He had seen the kiss. "I didn't mean for it to happen Luke, it just did," she said nervously, "he's really sweet with me and I really like him." She really hoped that Lucas wouldn't be too mad, but she knew he would.

Lucas couldn't believe this. He could feel his face turning red in anger, "So you didn't mean to kiss him?"

"Luke, I'm sorry," she stuttered slowly, "I know that you hate him, but I don't. I like him, a lot."

"HE'S WITH PEYTON!" Lucas yelled. He was infuriated. Lucas looked at Haley and shook his head. She looked so small and afraid of Luke, the way he was yelling.

Haley almost starting crying. She knew this hurt Luke but, "I'm sorry," she said, a tear escaping from her eye.

"What about Peyton?" he asked, thinking of the girl he had a crush on, "Did you even think how much this is going to hurt her?"

Tears were now flowing from her eyes, "You think I don't think about that _every_ day? We talk about it constantly! He is just waiting for things to get better with her dad, he doesn't want to hurt her more!" Haley said, sobs sometimes interrupting

Lucas watched her cry with cold eyes. "Who are you?" he asked out of nowhere.

She looked up at him, sobs stopping, not believing he asked that. "Luke..."

"No," he said interrupting her. "No, I don't know who you are anymore. You certainly aren't the Haley James that I became best friends with, so what happened to you? You can't even see that he's using you, but you're also hurting Peyton. The girl I became friends with would never do that," when he finished he turned around and walked out of the backroom into the empty café, he walked out threw the door.

Haley's sobs returned. She fell onto the floor and cried. _How could this have happened?_ She wondered. She couldn't believe Lucas had just walked out. Now who did she have? Did she really change? If so, who was she? Thoughts like this were racing through her head. So, she sat in a heap on the floor, crying.

_I hope ya'll liked it! It took me really long to write this one. I knew I wanted Luke to be mad, but I didn't know what to make him say or do. It was difficult for me, especially since I've never had a fight like that. If I had, it might have been easier but... Anyway, I hope ya'll enjoyed it and please review!_


	6. Million Tears

_Ok, so, sorry it has taken me so long to update. I've been really busy and just got back from camp and stuff. After that, I'll try not to make ya'll wait so long for an update. Here ya go!!!_

Chapter 6: Million Tears

_By: Chelsea_

_**Rating**_**: K+... some bad language.**

_**Disclaimer**_**: I do not own OTH or anything related to it including its characters and settings. I also borrowed the title of this story from a Kelly Clarkson song and the title of this chapter from a Kasey Chambers song. Seriously, if you listen to it - I kind of thought it fit the way Haley has been feeling throughout the whole thing.**

_Chap. 6..._

_Million Tears_

_Day after Haley and Lucas's fight... Tuesday_

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_ Haley rolled over and turned off the alarm almost right when it went off. She hadn't been sleeping, she had slept a total of about an hour the whole night. She had been thinking - about everything. Nathan, Lucas... how could she get caught between two brothers in such a nasty way? She sat up in the bed, maybe she wouldn't have to go to school. That wouldn't work - she had too much to do.

She glanced at her phone she had 6 missed calls - all from Nathan. All from yesterday. She heard the phone ringing, she saw it was Nathan, but she didn't want to talk to him. He was the only one who had called yesterday, and she hadn't messed with her phone. So, it still said '6 Missed Calls'. She was sort of happy Nathan had called so much, that meant he cared. She _needed _to know that he cared. After what Lucas had said about Nathan using her, she had really assessed their relationship. Going over every kiss, every hug, everything he had said to her.

Haley threw her legs over the side of the bed and walked into the bathroom. She stopped in front of the mirror. She examined her slightly puffy eyes and red face. She cried herself to sleep, then slept for only an hour. When she woke up, she mostly thought, with an occasional tear. She took a quick shower, blow-dried and brushed her hair, got dressed, brushed her teeth, put up her books, and covered up the remaining red spots on her face with concealer. Haley walked down the stairs and out the door. She wasn't hungry at all. By the time she walked to school, it was 15 minutes to the bell. She glanced around in the courtyard for Luke. He said that he was always here early, yet, she couldn't see him anywhere. Haley walked into the building and headed for the Tutor Center.

"Hey," said Nathan standing up from the table in the middle of the room. "What's up? You didn't answer your phone yesterday. I called like 5 times."

"6," Haley said correcting him. She looked up at him, hoping the concealer was still working. "Lucas knows," she said weakly.

"He... what?" Nathan had a concentrating look on his face. "You told him?"

"No!" she said defensively. "You think I would tell him while you're still with Peyton?" she couldn't believe Nathan would think that. "He saw _you_ kiss me."

Nathan sighed. He had wanted to tell her some good news, but this was more important. "Is he mad?" Nathan asked stupidly.

"Yeah..." Haley looked around the room. She had wanted to tell Lucas about her and Nathan. And not any time soon, more like a few weeks after he broke up with Peyton, but that wouldn't happen now. "So, what are you doing here?"

Nathan solemn look was suddenly replaced by a smile. "Oh, yeah, I have some good news," he said cheerfully.

"Good news?" Haley asked sarcastically. "I'm sorry, but I don't think all the good news in the world could make me happy now."

"Well, it might not make you exactly _happy_, but it will make you feel a little better," he said still smiling hugely.

"Oh, really?" she asked glancing out the door and into the hallway to see if anyone was out there. "Then what is it?"

"I broke up with Peyton," he said a little quietly, so that someone in the hall couldn't hear.

"Nathan!" Haley said in a hushed yell. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. He slid his arms around her waist and bent over so his head was on her shoulder, constantly making sure that no one was watching. "But how?" Haley asked coming out of the hug a little. "I thought she was meeting her dad."

"She was, and she did, but, without me," he said plainly.

You could tell Haley was confused by the look on her face. "Wait... what?"

"Well," Nathan began, "when we were driving to the café, I just felt, different - but in a good way. I've never felt like that before and I didn't want it to end. Then, I saw Peyton and I just ended it. I didn't want to keep pretending. I just wanted - want - to be with you," throughout the whole thing, his deep blue eyes never broke from her big brown ones, which were know shining from the liquid gloss that covered them from his words.

"Nathan..." Haley said so quietly that it was barely audible.

"And I mean it," Nathan added. He moved his hands up from her waist to her cheeks and kissed quickly. "But, can we wait just a little longer?"

Haley understood what he meant. "Of course," Haley agreed. How would it look on either of their ends if Nathan was already dating Haley a day after he broke up with Peyton? More and more people were starting to fill the halls. "I guess you should go," Haley said.

"Yeah," Nathan said looking into the hall. "Well, I guess it's ok if people know you are tutoring me now, right?" Haley smiled slightly. "So, lunch?"

"Ok," Haley said. Nathan gave her his crooked smile and walked out the door. She bit her bottom lip as she watched him leave. "Lunch," she muttered, she was considering it their first date. She could possibly be happy with him. She had endured so much pain, cried so many tears, over this one man, all the crazy nights of thinking about him, all the lies, wishing that he was with her and only her, this was it - almost.

_Well, there it is. I personally can't wait for the next chapter - I just have to figure out what I want to do. So, reviews are welcome!!!! _


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